Recent ringing at Holme Pierrepont

We have paid three more visits to Holme Pierrepont recently on 14, 16 and 21 July. The visit on 16 was to the Grange end the other two to the Blotts end.

Weather was relatively good for all visits but strangely on 21 when it was ideal we caught the least birds!

The team on the 14th consisted of Holly, Sophie, Alan, Kate, Sarah, Richard, Alex, Mick T, Gary and me. We finished on 106 birds including 15 retraps made up of (new/retrap): Song Thrush 1/1, Blackbird 2/0, Robin 3/0, Wren 2/0, Dunnock 1/0, Willow Warbler 7/1, Chiffchaff 8/2, Blackcap 5/2, Garden Warbler 3/1, Whitethroat 3/0, Lesser Whitethroat 1/0, Reed Warbler 18/1, Sedge Warbler 3/2, Cetti’s Warbler 0/1, Blue Tit 5/1, Great Tit 4/0, Treecreeper 1/0, Bullfinch 2/2, Greenfinch 6/0, Goldfinch 7/1, Reed Bunting 10/0. The most interesting recaptures were a control Reed Warbler and a Goldfinch from Tom’s garden in Colwick.

The team on the 16th consisted of Holly, Sophie, Alan, Kate, Sarah, Richard, Alex, Mick T, Gary and me. We finished on 96 birds including 12 retraps made up of (new/retrap): Wren 6/2, Willow Warbler 2/1, Chiffchaff 2/3, Blackcap 18/2, Garden Warbler 3/0, Reed Warbler 14/4, Sedge Warbler 2/0, Cetti’s Warbler 3/0, Goldcrest 1/0, Blue Tit 6/0, Great Tit 2/0, Long-tailed Tit 5/0, Greenfinch 2/0. The oldest retrap was a Reed Warbler from 2012.

The team on the 21st consisted of Holly, Sophie, Alan, Kate, Sarah, Richard, Alex, Mick T, Gary and me. We finished on 65 birds including 14 retraps made up of (new/retrap): Kingfisher 1/0, Blackbird
1/0, Robin 1/1, Dunnock 1/0, Willow Warbler 5/0, Chiffchaff 2/5, Blackcap 4/0, Garden Warbler 6/0, Whitethroat 5/1, Lesser Whitethroat 1/0, Reed Warbler 18/3, Sedge Warbler 1/2, Cetti’s Warbler 0/2, Great Tit 1/0, Long-tailed Tit 1/0, Bullfinch 3/0, Greenfinch 1/0. The oldest retraps were from 2018.

Kev

 A juvenile Whitethroat (showing a moult limit in the greater coverts) and a Kingfisher (Alan Hurst). It should be noted that the Kingfisher was not injured or behaving strangely in any way in the first photograph. Their natural reaction to a predator is to go into what seems like a trance, from which they will suddenly emerge and fly off (presumably when the predator has put them down, assuming them to be dead!).